11/30/2020
This amusing series launch from YA author Cosimano (Seasons of the Storm), her adult debut, has a pleasingly absurd premise. Wronged wife Patricia Mickler overhears Finlay Donovan, a down-and-out romantic suspense novelist, talking about her next book with her agent in a suburban Virginia sandwich shop. Mistaking Finlay for a killer for hire, Patricia offers the author $50,000 to kill her no-good husband, Harris. The money is just what Finlay needs to deal with her ex, who’s trying to renegotiate their custody agreement. Of course, Finlay has no intention of actually killing Harris, but fate intervenes—and when she witnesses Harris attempting to drug a woman in a bar, Finlay is launched into a screwball mystery involving Russian gangsters, more angry wives, and a disturbingly attractive police detective. Finlay’s antics require a suspension of disbelief that some readers may find difficult to sustain, and others may be troubled by seeing issues such as date rape and revenge porn handled with such a light hand. But those willing to enter into the spirit of Finlay’s world should enjoy this romp from a skilled comic writer. Agent: Sarah Davies, Greenhouse Literary. (Feb.)
A USA Today bestseller!
An American Booksellers Association Bestseller!
One of Suspense Magazine's "Best Thrillers of 2021"
One of New York Public Library's Best Books of 2021
Nominated for the Left Coast Crime 2022 Lefty Award for the Best Humorous Mystery
One of "26 Murder Mystery Books You Won't Be Able to Put Down"—Country Living
One of “The Most Anticipated Books of Winter 2021” —Parade
One of “The Most Anticipated Debuts of 2021” —Bustle
One of “The Most Anticipated Mysteries and Thrillers of 2021” —Goodreads
One of “The Most Anticipated Crime Books of 2021” —Crimereads
One of “The Highly Recommended Books of 2021” —Brit + Co
One of “The Best Books to Read in 2021” —Betches
One of “The Must-Read Mysteries and Thrillers of 2021” —Frolic
One of "The 18 Best Beach Reads of Summer 2021" —PureWow
One of "Our Picks for the Best Mysteries and Thrillers of 2021"—Bookbub
A "Favorite Suspenseful Beach Read"—SheReads
One of "15 Best Murder Mystery Books that are Total Page Turners"—Redbook
One of “The Best Modern Murder Mystery Books”—The Mary Sue
One of “10 Books Perfect for Reading By The Shore”—Brit+Co
One of “6 Satirical Mystery Books That Are Exceptionally Self-Aware”—Murder & Mayhem
One of “10 Empowering Novels That Center On Badass Single Moms”—Scary Mommy
One of “15 Books To Read In 2024”—The Holderness Family
One of “The 30 Top Mystery Books Of All Time”—Forbes
“A twisty delight.”—PEOPLE
“[Cosimano's] main character is so endearing it's easy to surrender...”—New York Times Book Review
“If you love thrillers, but wish the genre would lighten up a little then you absolutely must read Finlay Donovan Is Killing It.”—PopSugar
“Fast-paced, fresh, full of humor, and original.”—Jill Orr in St. Louis Magazine
“Part comedy of errors, part genuine thriller… Deftly balancing genre conventions with sly, tongue-in-cheek comments on motherhood and femininity, Cosimano crafts a deliciously twisted tale.”—Booklist
“Suspenseful, funny.... More, please.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Amusing… pleasingly absurd... [a] romp from a skilled comic writer.”—Publishers Weekly
“[A] fun adult debut… readers will enjoy this breezy romp.”—Library Journal
“Part screwball comedy, part morality tale, the amusing Finlay Donovan Is Killing It is also a tale about parenting, bad divorces, reinventing oneself, rising above misery and, well, becoming a hit woman. It’s a solid, thoughtful and funny yet poignant mystery that never once becomes a one-note story.”—South Florida Sun Sentinel
“Smart-alecky and shrewd, tense and twisty, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It portends serial success for Cosimano and additional adventures for Finlay..”—Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star
“Read in a single night, applauding along the way. For anyone who’s ever wished to turn her life around, Finlay Donovan is the master. From failing everything, to succeeding brilliantly, she proves you only need to get mistaken once for a contract killer, to solve all your problems.”—Lisa Gardner, #1 New York Times bestselling author of When You See Me
“Funny and smart, twisty and surprising—Finlay Donovan is a character to root for. This suspenseful romp made me laugh but also kept me on the edge of my seat with its many surprises. I can’t wait for the next book!”—Megan Miranda, New York Times bestselling author of The Last House Guest
“Clever, perfectly plotted, and laugh out loud funny, Finlay Donovan is Killing It is one of those books that will make you smile long after you’ve turned the last page. This series is pitch-perfect and will be devoured by fans of Janet Evanovich. Elle Cosimano hits it way, way, way out of the park!”—Wendy Walker, bestselling author of The Night Before and Emma in the Night
“Fresh, fast-paced, and darkly fun with a deeply flawed but compulsively likeable heroine, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It is a madcap thriller that will keep you flipping pages long past your bedtime!”—Katherine St. John, author of The Lion's Den
“The Finlay Donovan series is simply spectacular and always delightful! I adore everything about it—the humor, the screwball plotlines, the mysteries, and above all the cast: the friendship between Vero and Finlay is one for the ages, and Finlay’s love life entertains me to no end. Elle Cosimano’s books are the perfect blend of mystery and romcom, and I’m ready to follow Finlay wherever she goes!”—Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis
09/01/2020
In Armstrong's A Stranger in Town, Det. Casey Duncan learns that off-the-grid Rockton may be cashiered (50,000-copy first printing). Award-winning YA fiction author Cosimano's first adult novel, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It, features a struggling suspense writer mistaken as a serial killer (100,000-copy first printing). In Finch's An Extravagant Death, Victorian-era sleuth Sir Charles Lennox takes his first trip to America (100,000-copy first printing). In Harper's The Survivors, Kieran Elliot returns to his coastal hometown and relives a childhood tragedy (125,000-copy first printing). Harrod-Eagles's Cruel as the Grave has Bill Slider doubting that a fitness trainer was killed by his girlfriend. Ide's Smoke marks the return of Isaiah Quintabe, the Sherlock Holmes of South Central Los Angeles. Mosley's Blood Grove puts popular protagonist Easy Rawlins front and center again (40,000-copy first printing). In Robb's Faithless in Death, Lt. Eve Dallas wonders if an angry lover really did kill sculptor Ariel Byrd (750,000-copy first printing). Todd's A Fatal Lie, Inspector Ian Rutledge seeks the identity of a stranger who tumbled from a Welsh aqueduct. Westerson's Spiteful Bones has Crispin Guest, London's famed Tracker, untangle the mystery around a bound skeleton found in a manor wall.
A suburban Virginia divorcée struggles with that classic dilemma: What should she do when she’s offered a fat paycheck to kill a complete stranger?
Struggling romantic suspense novelist Finlay Donovan doesn’t think much of her ex-husband, Steven, who’s been nickel-and-diming her ever since she dumped him over his affair with Theresa Hall, the realtor who’s since become his fiancee. So she’s not entirely surprised when Patricia Mickler, overhearing her chatting with her agent in the local Panera about her latest work in progress, indicates that her own husband is even worse. He’s a blackmailer and serial rapist who’s beaten his wife repeatedly. What stuns Finn is the way Patricia communicates her hatred for her husband: She offers Finn $50,000 to kill him. Of course Finn has no intention of going through with this harebrained scheme, but a series of unlikely miscues ends with Harris Mickler dead in her garage with every indication that she’s murdered him. The only bright spots are that Veronica, the accounting-student nanny Steven just laid off without warning Finn in advance, comes upon the scene ready and eager to help and that Steven owns a sod farm where the conspirators can bury the body without telling him. Everything seems to have worked out improbably well until Finn, who really does need the money, is offered an even bigger purse for killing someone else considerably more savvy and dangerous. YA specialist Cosimano cuts dexterously between Finn’s adventures as a hit woman, her deeply iffy romance with Fairfax County Detective Nicholas Anthony, and the domestic crises that keep on piling up as if nothing had ever happened to disturb them.
Suspenseful, funny, and even a tad mysterious. More, please.
Angela Dawe’s narration makes YA author Elle Cosimano’s debut novel for grown-ups a wild and funny romp . Divorced, broke mystery writer Finlay Donovan is overheard in a restaurant plotting her next novel. The eavesdropper mistakes her for a hit man (person?) and offers her big bucks to kill her despicable husband. Dawe is spot-on with self-deprecating humor and uncertainty as Finn’s world grows even more chaotic when her ex fires the nanny. With no intention of doing the deed, Finn investigates the proposed victim, and when the man turns up dead in her garage, the game’s afoot. Dawe offers Cosimano’s laugh-out-loud moments with just the right sparkle. While it may take some suspension of disbelief to accept the improbable events, Dawe makes us believers. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Angela Dawe’s narration makes YA author Elle Cosimano’s debut novel for grown-ups a wild and funny romp . Divorced, broke mystery writer Finlay Donovan is overheard in a restaurant plotting her next novel. The eavesdropper mistakes her for a hit man (person?) and offers her big bucks to kill her despicable husband. Dawe is spot-on with self-deprecating humor and uncertainty as Finn’s world grows even more chaotic when her ex fires the nanny. With no intention of doing the deed, Finn investigates the proposed victim, and when the man turns up dead in her garage, the game’s afoot. Dawe offers Cosimano’s laugh-out-loud moments with just the right sparkle. While it may take some suspension of disbelief to accept the improbable events, Dawe makes us believers. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
